Viewpoint: Spontaneous Dancing Erupted at Easter
Awhile back someone stopped me at the Post Office and said they liked the paper but wished we would write a little less about our grandkids and deal with some of the hard-hitting issues going on in our community. You may have noticed that for the last several weeks I haven’t mentioned those kids a single time and have dealt head on with some of the most problematic issues of the day.
But I have to admit I’ve wondered a little bit about that gentle confrontation. I wish I would have asked to see a picture of their grandchildren. That one simple question might have gotten down to the core problem. Envy, the green-eyed monster, rears its ugly head on a regular basis where my grandchildren are involved.
Some of you may think I am biased. But having served as both a police officer and a reporter I am completely able to leave any personal bias aside and just deal with the truth. In fact, I am so able to maintain my neutrality that I have a certificate that makes mention of the fact. And it was no small feat getting that certificate. I had to figure out how to get it to print off the internet site I found it on and still maintain its authentic character. I am unbiased.
We got the kids around noon Thursday and kept them until Saturday afternoon. Friday night, as we got them ready for bed, the oldest, Kahlynn, age six, wanted to “read” a book to her younger siblings. Kahlynn is in Kindergarten and can identify some of the words but she has heard “Russell the Sheep” so often she knows it by heart. So, she sat on the floor and began reading the book to Blake, age four, and Ellee, age two.
Blake sat at attention. Ellee, did I mention she is two, not so much. It proved very difficult for her older sister to make that one sit down and listen. Kahlynn finally gave up, focusing on Blake, and Ellee wandered into the closet.
In the closet Ellee discovered a model of a boom box that plays two different songs. She pressed the button and the music began to drown-out "Russell the Sheep". Blake, who has frequently been compared to the Saturday Night Fever John Travolta, could no longer concentrate on some sheep with insomnia named Russell. He leapt to his feet and began dancing to the music. Ellee, of course, had began dancing within milliseconds of pushing the button. Kahlynn, generally very strongly opinionated about what should and shouldn’t be going on, barely uttered a whimper before she too broke out in spontaneous dance.
Lori and I could do nothing but laugh, and laugh and laugh.
No 48-hour visit is limited to one moment of sunshine and light. There are always others. After hunting Easter eggs, Ellee decided she should take in some food from the strenuous effort of the search. She decided the Easter Eggs would serve that purpose. Perched on a patio chair, she took a bite, shell and all.
When Lori peeled the egg for her, she was no longer interested in the egg. Just not enough crunch.
The three are close in age, have definite familial likenesses and are, also, so different. At one point all three were coloring with Grandma. Kahlynn was holding a color. It was perched over a page that certainly needed coloring, but all she was doing was talking to Grandma.
Ellee was crouched over the page she was coloring. Her little hands were moving furiously, determined that one and only one color was needed on the page.
Blake had two large colors, one in each hand. He did not have a page to color. He was talking to the two oversized colors and they, apparently, were talking back.
I changed the canister on my oxygen tank. Armed with another full oxygen bottle I slowly, quietly, reached for the fake boom box that played only two songs. I pressed the button. Colors flew in the air and spontaneous dancing erupted. All was good.